The invention relates to a safety container, particularly for prevention of access to items such as medicinal products by children.
At present, there are many arrangements of such containers. One such container is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,844,407 (Buie). This container comprises two cylindrical parts, having closed ends disposed opposite one another for thumb and forefinger compression together against an internal combined locking and moisture-seal spring device. This container is child-resistant because both particular knowledge and dexterity is required. U.S. Pat. No. 4,056,209 (Winkler et al) also describes a child-resistant container for which particular knowledge of the operating mechanism is required and it is difficult for a child to grasp the relevant parts.
However, there is in general a problem with such safety containers because they may be opened by a child having both the dexterity and the required knowledge to do so.
In another approach containers have been described which are child-resistant on the basis that the span of a child""s hand is too short to open the container. The principle is that irrespective of what knowledge a child acquires and how much dexterity he or she has, it is not physically possible to open the container. U.S. Pat. No. 4,746,008 (Heverly et al) describes a box with a lid having two sets of finger-actuated latches positioned so that only two adult hands can span the distance between the latches. EP286936 discloses a container which is child-resistant on a similar basis.
While these developments are suitable for some applications, there is a need for a container which is both child-resistant and which can have a variety of sizes and shapes, including a conventional cylindrical configuration. There is also a need for such a container which is of simpler constructionxe2x80x94not requiring complex latch and fastening mechanisms generally.
According to the invention, there is provided a safety container comprising a container body having an opening for insertion and removal of items, characterised in that the container further comprises:
a safety cover surrounding the container body and preventing access to said opening,
a fastening means retaining the safety cover in place surrounding the container body, and being disengageable only by relative movement of the container body and the safety cover, and
wherein the safety cover has apertures to allow a user to grip the container body using a thumb and at least one finger, the location of the apertures being such that a child""s hand does not have sufficient span to grip the container body.
In one embodiment, the apertures are located at opposed ends of the safety cover.
In another embodiment, the container body and the safety cover are of substantially cylindrical shape.
In one embodiment, the safety cover comprises an aperture revealing an end face of the container body and another aperture revealing only part of the opposite end of the container body.
In another embodiment, the fastening means is of a type whereby it is disengaged by mutual rotation of the safety cover and the container body.
In one embodiment, the fastening means comprises at least one screw thread. There may only be a single thread.
In another embodiment, the thread is located between the ends of the container body.
In a further embodiment, the container body comprises a cap for the opening.
In one embodiment, the safety cover is engaged with the cap by the fastening means.
In a further embodiment, the container body end faces are recessed behind an outer surface of the safety cover.
In one embodiment, the safety cover extends beyond the container body at an end of the container body.
In another embodiment, the container body opening is in a side wall of the container body between its ends and is solely covered by the safety cover.
According to another aspect, the invention provides a safety container comprising:
a container body of cylindrical shape having an end wall and an upstanding side wall defining an opening;
a cap over said opening;
a safety cover of cylindrical shape surrounding the container body and having an aperture at each end, one aperture exposing the container body end wall and the other aperture exposing an upper face of the cap;
wherein the separation of the apertures is such that a child""s hand does not have sufficient span to grip the container body using the thumb and a finger of one hand; and
a fastener engaging the container body with the safety cover whereby the container body and the safety cover may be disengaged by mutual rotation with one hand gripping the safety cover and the other hand gripping the container body through said apertures.